Don't Look To the Trellis For Life Stay Connected To the Vine

# 626 - Today's Du-votional comes from: Mr 12:6,7 "Therefore still having one son, his beloved, he also sent him to them last, saying, 'They will respect my son.'
7 "But those vinedressers said among themselves, 'This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.

And now the final damning portion of this prophetic parable. The Jews and their leaders killed the prophets and now they would kill God's only Son. They refused to see that Jesus sprouted from the root of Jesse through His miraculous incarnation.

He is the vine and we are the branches, and what folly to think you can remove the vine and still survive as a branch! The unbelieving Jews chose to cling to the trellis of the Law rather than connect to the life giving sap of grace.

This is the age old problem of salvation by works. The world, our flesh, and the devil constantly try to convince us that we can be good enough apart from Christ. It's a struggle even after we have placed our faith in Jesus. Our lives change for the better as we start winning a few battles with sin, and we begin to think more highly of ourselves than we ought, but we must never forget where the power comes from for those victories.

It is the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit through grace, not the Law that makes the difference. And when we sense a spiritual withering in our lives, don't look to the trellis (the Law) for help, rather seek to get reconnected to the vine.

Father, I confess I fall into this trap far too often. I love the trellis for it guides me and keeps me following the direction that You would have me go, but if I disconnect from the vine of the Holy Spirit, I will wither and die. Keep me connected dear Lord.